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 Post subject: Kyllinga & Manage
PostPosted: Mon Nov 03, 2003 4:58 pm 
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Joined: Mon Nov 03, 2003 4:30 pm
Posts: 2
Has anyone found a way to get rid of the sedge known as Green Kyllinga organically?

It has taken over about a fourth of our 2yr old non-organically maintained St. Augustine backyard (long story but since we moved in our new house I have not been able to work the landscape much & my dh will cooperate with me but isn't much interested in doing it on his own so he does what he knows).

Manage has worked fairly well - I just hate having him using it. But he's not going to stop unless I can give him a viable alternative & neither one of us has the time to dig so much up.

Our yard has a fairly significant slope as well as drainage problems in a number of areas so we struggle with water running off the clay before it can soak in as well as boggy areas that almost never dry. (Ironically though the kyllinga is at its worst in one of the driest areas rather than the bog spots) The soil is awful - the builder put their lifeless orangey-red stuff on top of the native black gumbo and their "landscaper" put sand on top of that.

If we could afford it, I'd hire someone to scrape off everything, level it properly, put some good soil down & go from there, but we can't. Now that I am able to spend a LITTLE more time in the yard again, there is so much that needs fixing over here, it's overwhelming. It's hard to know where to start - though I'm sure improving drainage is probably #1.

Graceland

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Katy (West Houston), TX
Zone 9


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 Post subject: sedge & drainage
PostPosted: Sun Nov 30, 2003 3:28 pm 
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Joined: Wed May 21, 2003 5:33 pm
Posts: 829
Location: Dallas,TX
Strange no one has tried to answer you yet, but let me give you an answer and see if it will help you.

First, you have drainage problems and this indicates that you have compacted soil and/or poor soil. Compost and molasses will take you a long way toward addressing this situation. There are several types of liquid composts on the market or you can spread 1/2 to 1 inch all over the yard for starters. Molasses will also help your situation; liquid is my preference but dry molasses will also work. If you choose liquid materials, combine them and apply immediately or if you choose dry materials, you can mix them together to make spreading easier. Cornmeal will help a lot too as it encourages the beneficial fungi in the soil and will add organic material. Cornmeal can be mixed with the compost, molasses or a fertilizer to make application easier.

Soil bio-innoculant is called for here as it sounds like your top layers of soil are probably very low on beneficial micro-organisms. Earthworm and Agrispon are two you should be able to find pretty easily. Cornmeal may have little effect at first as the two products you mention are toxins that would likely damage the beneficial fungi the cornmeal encourages, but it is beneficial in adding more organic material. The beneficial microbes will also help in the boggy areasl.

It is no surprise the sedge grows in the dryer spots because if it were in the wet spots the little bulbs would rot. Try a heavy application of molasses in the area they grow and make it nice and wet. I have had good luck making these guys rot away with that method.

Once you are on the path with this start, stay away from the poisons. Every time you allow them to be used on your property you take a step backward. Tough out the rough spots for just a little while and you will be very pleased with the end results. That's this spring, not in two years.

Hope this helps! :D


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 Post subject: Green Kyllinga
PostPosted: Sat Oct 15, 2005 10:22 pm 
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Joined: Sat Oct 15, 2005 10:19 pm
Posts: 2
Location: Allen,TEXAS
Did you ever get your Green Kyllinga under control? I have a Bermuda lawn that sprouted Green Kyllinga shortly after using Greensense and Dried Molasses. I don't know for sure that there is a connection but none of my neighbors seem to have it. It has covered about 1/3 of my lawn and still spreading.

Please let me know of any advice to control it.


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 Post subject:
PostPosted: Sun Oct 16, 2005 8:09 am 
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Joined: Tue May 10, 2005 10:18 am
Posts: 114
Location: Southeast Dallas County/Balch Springs ,TEXAS
I doubt the greensense or dry molasses caused the outburst of growth. But autumn is the BEST time to apply a good 1/4 inch layer of a nice finely screened compost to the lawn. If you can afford it, have it blown out over the whole thing. Otherwise, bag at a time and lightly rake it out with a leaf rake. You would be amazed at how much good this does on its own. But, if you can also spread an organic fertilizer, like Texas Tea or Bioform, it will really encourage a healthy soil - which of course encourages a healthier turf - which, will eventually win over the weeds.

Hope this helps. Also, you may call Howard today and ask if the winter spray of vinegar would help against this situation. You do have to wait for the grass to be dormant though, I know that much. But I would definitely do the compost and fertilizer this fall. :)


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 Post subject:
PostPosted: Sun Oct 16, 2005 12:01 pm 
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Joined: Sat Oct 15, 2005 10:19 pm
Posts: 2
Location: Allen,TEXAS
Hi, thanks for your prompt reply. I do plan to follow your advise and spread compost. However, in all of my reading online this morning, about the only thing that works on Kyllinga is "Manage".

I agree with the natural approach, but I think this weed is going to enjoy all of that compost rather than die away. I need something to kill it out. I don't know if the vinegar solution Howard recommends would be effective or not. This weed is already spreading into my neighbor's yard.


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